


Faulty Logic

by Quarantinevibes



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Caring Deceit | Janus Sanders, Deceit | Janus Sanders-centric, Fluff, Gen, Hurt Logic | Logan Sanders, Hurt/Comfort, I gave Remus braincells again, Janus can taste lies, Logic | Logan Sanders Angst, Logic | Logan Sanders-centric, Sick Logic | Logan Sanders, Sympathetic Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders, Sympathetic Deceit | Janus Sanders, and Roman is back to his confident/ not emotionally destroyed self, as a treat, we're pretending that POF has been resolved
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-16
Updated: 2020-06-23
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:00:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 9,750
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24755161
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Quarantinevibes/pseuds/Quarantinevibes
Summary: Logan is sick and Janus tries to get him to rest and recover. Logan, however, has other ideas. Between constantly dragging Logan back to bed and trying to get Logan to rest, Janus notices that there's more to Logan's sickness than meets the eye. What is Logan hiding, and why does he seem so desperate to keep it from everyone else?Complete!
Comments: 447
Kudos: 592





	1. Olives

“Logan, are you feeling ok?”

Janus had been watching Logan’s face closely for the past five minutes. They had just finished recording a video and Janus had come into the common room to help decide between two of Thomas’s play opportunities. One play was close by, directed by one of his close friends, but didn’t pay much. The other was about an hour away from his house, would be full of an unknown cast, but paid well. Logan had called him the other day to see if they could get together and work out a solution, but every few minutes, Logan would lift his elbow and cough into it in a way that was supposed to be subtle, but really just sounded painful.

Logan blinked, hard, as if he couldn’t see Janus clearly.

“I’m fine,” Logan said and frowned when Janus’s stare didn’t waver, “I, just have a slight headache. Nothing to worry about.”

Janus’s tongue flicked and he grimaced at how the lie tasted, like olive pits that were left to stew in lukewarm vodka for too long. He lifted his hand and felt Logan’s forehead. The laptop on his legs fell softy onto the couch as he did so.

“Logan, you’re burning up,” Janus muttered and Logan waved his hand away.

“You can’t know that. You have gloves on your hands.”

“And I can feel that you’re burning up _through_ my gloves. Which, in my humble opinion, is an even higher cause for concern.”

Logan rolled his eyes, again insisting that he’s fine. He motioned for Janus to pick up the laptop so they could continue researching the two roles. Janus raised an eyebrow and picked up the laptop.

Then promptly shut it.

“Wha-” Logan started, resisting as Janus tried to pull him up.

“Come on. To bed with you,” Janus said and tugged again, this time successfully getting the other side to his feet. Logan sighed as Janus pushed him towards his room.

“You’re being dramatic, Janus. It’s only a headache.”

“And a fever, and coughs, and probably aches and pains,” Janus retorted, opened Logan’s door, and pushed him onto his bed.

“This is silly,” Logan muttered again, but his eyes fluttered as soon as his head hit the pillow.

“Right. That’s why your eyes are closed right now,” Janus said and took Logan’s glasses off.

“ ‘M resting them, to…preserve energy,” Logan said with a pout, not making a move to open them again.

“Of course. Where do you keep your Tylenol, oh energetic one?”

Logan shifted to his side, “Don’t have any. Can usually wait it out.”

Janus frowned at the implications of that and set the glasses on the nightstand. How often did Logan get like this?

“I’ll go grab you some then, ok?”

Logan hummed, a mix of ‘I’m fine’ and ‘no need’. Janus rolled his eyes and went to his room to grab the medicine.

The day had started out normally, and Logan had seemed truly fine when they started filming the video. It was only afterwards that he seemed to get uncomfortable and feverish. Janus frowned, he had asked if they could work on the play issue right after the video and Logan had given him a strange look, but agreed anyways. Had Logan been expecting the headache? Perhaps it was a daily issue? But no, he seemed fine yesterday and the day before that.

Janus shook the thoughts out of his head as he rummaged around his drawers and his fingers grabbed hold of a small bottle. He popped the cap open, shook two white tablets into his hand, and went back to Logan’s room.

“I couldn’t find my 500mg, so you can take two 100mg and see if you need more,” Janus said as he walked into the room. There was no reply.

“Logan?” Janus asked and approached the now notably empty bed.

“Where the-” Janus started, “Logan?” Janus called again, checking the bathroom, but not seeing any sign of the logical side. There was a _crash!_ and Janus jumped and ran into the kitchen where the sound had come from.

“Logan?!” Janus yelled and blinked at the scene in front of him.

Virgil was hunched on the countertop like a feral gargoyle and glaring as Roman waved around a half peeled potato. Patton was trying to get Virgil down and Logan was holding a potato peeler and a knife all while looking incredibly annoyed.

Janus didn’t even bother asking what was happening. He just locked eyes with Patton.

“They tried to help me with cooking and started debating the best way to peel a potato,” Patton said.

“The peeler is specifically designed to make peeling easier!” Virgil screamed.

“The peeler is the coward’s way out! True mastery comes from being able to use a knife!”

“You can get hurt with a knife!”

“Knives are more versatile and can work on tougher skin!”

Roman reached for the knife and Virgil reached for the peeler. Logan held them above him and the two of them crashed into each other.

“Peelers can be useful for many types of vegetables and knives, in the hands of someone skilled, can be more efficient, but-” Logan started but Roman ignored him and reached for the knife again. Logan sighed and put them both in the sink.

Patton laughed nervously and took the potatoes, some peeled, some half peeled, and some with full peel, and dropped them into the pot.

“Eh-well, potato skin makes for good fiber! They’ll add…variety to our mashed potatoes!” he said and began chopping some garlic. Virgil and Roman grumbled, but didn’t argue.

Logan’s eye twitched and Janus frowned. He grabbed Logan’s arm.

“Well. I’m glad you could be the potato peacemaker, but you really should go back to bed, Logan. I brought the Tylenol for you.”

Logan flushed as the other sides swiveled to stare at him.

“Are ya getting those headaches again, kiddo?” Patton asked, stopping his chopping and setting his knife down.

“I,” Logan started and shifted his weight, “it’s fine. Just a small headache,” he took the tablets from Janus’s hand and gulped them down dry, “See? All better. Besides, we have a lot of tasks to get through today and postponing them will only make more work for us later.”

“Gulping down painkillers does not make you ‘all better’, you know that,” Janus said. He shoved Logan away from the kitchen and pulled him into his room, “Stay here, I’ll go get you some water and you can rest,” he put up a hand when Logan started to argue, “ _I’ll_ see what I can do about the tasks you mentioned. If logic isn’t functioning at optimum health, we’ve already compromised ourselves.”

Logan mumbled something, but sat down on his bed. Janus smiled, walked to the exit, closed the door behind him, and marched back into the kitchen. The other three sides were sitting at the table and Janus raised an eyebrow at them.

Janus crossed his arms, “And what exactly were those tasks Logan mentioned?” he asked.

Roman sat down at the table and hummed, “Well. First we have to make a plan for how to incorporate Thomas’s new exercise regimen into his schedule.”

“And who’s in charge of that?” asked Janus.

“Logan is,” Virgil said, sitting across from Roman, “We also have to update our vaccinations and call the doctor’s office.”

“And…and who does that?”

“Well,” Patton said and began to chop the garlic again, “Logan usually deals with all of the appointments.”

Janus rubbed his face, “Ugh. Ok, what else?”

“Well,” Patton started, “we also have to figure out how to fix the dryer, whether to call someone or attempt to do it ourselves.

“And who usually makes that call?” Janus asked and took in the other threes’ expressions.

“Oh you’ve got to be kidding me,” he muttered, “And you three don’t think that the assignment of responsibility is a _little_ skewed here? What the heck do you three do?”

“Hey! I do a lot!” Roman said, hands on his hips, “I’m the main component in all Thomas’s creative endeavors!”

“I make dinner?” Patton said with a shrug.

“I sit here and grimace. Occasionally, I even sneer,” Virgil said and smirked at Janus who rolled his eyes.

“Ah, ok. Each of you take a task. I have to go finish picking a play, but after that I’ll bring Logan some water,” he grumbled. He filled a tall glass before heading back to the couch, grabbing his laptop, and going to his room.

Janus stared at the screen. Logan had said that Thomas valued the friendship of the first play’s director. However it wasn’t as if their friendship would be compromised if Thomas didn’t act in their play, it would just be a more comfortable setting.

On the other hand, Janus thought, the other play’s genre was something Thomas has been meaning to try out. Perhaps the drive would be worth it. And the extra money didn’t hurt.

Janus typed up his thoughts in a pro and con list, the screen dimmed and flickered as it entered power-saver mode.

Janus nodded his head, decision tentatively made until he could run it by Thomas, and headed to Logan’s room.

“Logan?” Janus called softly, not wanting to wake the other up in case he was sleeping, “I got some water for you and-” Janus set the water on the nightstand and looked towards the bed.

Empty. Again. Janus groaned.

“Oh come _ON_.”


	2. Cherries

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Janus is off to search for Logan (again) !

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!! 👋🏽👋🏽  
> I haven't written a lot centering around Logan, so this fic was really fun/ cathartic. Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoy!! :D

When Janus found Logan again, he was in the Imagination.

Roman had redesigned it so that it resembled a gym, although it had more than a few…embellishments. The rock-climbing wall was more than two stories high and the rocks scuttled around each other and rearranged every few minutes. There was a treadmill more than eight feet across and rather than a normal belt, the treadmill would occasionally shift terrains from rocky to sandy to grassy to boiling rocks and lava. The pull-up bar moved itself, the pool swam with merfolk and miniature whales, the bike machine was set on the actual course of the Tour de France.

And in the middle of it all, Logan was standing, arms crossed, arguing with Roman.

“But if we don’t make our exercise regimen as _grand_ as possible, how will we ever achieve the heroics of our dreams?” Roman wailed and Logan rolled his eyes.

“Roman, when you said you’d help with this task, this,” he waved around him, “is not what I had in mind. I mean, how can Thomas even get laps done if the pool is filled with people and whales?”

Janus scoffed and walked up to them, “ _That’s_ your problem with this?”

Logan jumped at his voice and Janus narrowed his eyes.

“What are you doing out of bed?” he asked, voice low as he swirled Logan’s glass of water, “And why are you encouraging him?” he asked, now directing his question to Roman who huffed.

“He said he was feeling fine. Besides, I believe that I’m more than suited to the task, I was just running my final draft for Logan since it _was_ his responsibility in the first place.”

Janus’s jaw almost dropped, almost.

“I see now why Logan gets most of the responsibility,” he muttered and Roman scoffed.

“Well if you don’t like it,” he snapped his fingers and the three of them appeared in the real common room where Thomas was on his laptop, wearing the same shirt he had been for the third day in a row.

“Thomas!” Roman yelled and Thomas startled and looked up.

“Oh, hey Ro!” Thomas said and looked between the three of them, “what’s uh…what’s up?”

“Thomas, these two killjoys are harping on my plan for your exercise regimen. What do you think?”

Thomas tilted his head and closed his eyes as the imagination revealed Roman’s plans to him.

“Holy crap, is that a mermaid pool?” Thomas exclaimed and Roman laughed giddily in confirmation.

“There’s also lava. If you didn’t notice,” Janus deadpanned, but Thomas only made a sound of awe.

“Raises the stakes,” Thomas said quietly.

“That’s what I thought!” Roman exclaimed and Logan sighed.

“Ok, though the plan has obviously gotten your attention, you know it’s not feasible, right?”

Thomas nodded, eyes still closed, “Well, yeah. But pretending to be on the Tour de France while on a bike machine may keep me motivated. Besides, there’s no harm in imagining.”

“Yeah, Logan. What do you know?” Roman asked and Logan’s eyebrow twitched.

“I know that you can’t-!” Logan started, but cut himself off. A wince filled his face, gone so quickly that Janus almost thought he imagined it.

“Well, Thomas,” Janus started, “while there’s nothing wrong with imagination, you need to have a more _realistic_ set up or you’ll never actually get an exercise regimen started.”

Thomas sighed and nodded, “Yeah, yeah. You’re right, maybe no lava rocks or merfolks, but,” he frowned and looked at Logan who was rubbing his head, his expression pinched.

“Logan? Everything ok, buddy?”

Logan looked up briefly, “Ah. Yes, well if that’s settled, then,” he said and sunk out rather quickly. Thomas started to say something, but Roman had already gotten his attention with more, slightly more realistic, exercise ideas (ok no merfolk, but what if we got flippers?!). Janus left them to it and sunk into Logan’s room.

Logan was leaning over his desk, his shoulders hunched and knuckles turning white as he gripped the edge of it. That was no surprise, the conversation they just had was incredibly frustrating and both Roman _and_ Thomas had talked over Logan a bit. Janus went over to talk to him. Perhaps offer the many qualms he had about it, when he saw Logan’s face.

Pale as a ghost.

“Logan?” Janus asked and Logan blinked at him. He unclenched his hands and walked towards his bed, but nearly fell over.

“Wh-Logan!” Janus yelled and caught him, the glass of water toppling onto the ground as he did. Logan was looking worse than before, exponentially so. But how had his condition deteriorated so quickly? It didn’t make sense unless…

Unless there was something Janus was missing.

Janus helped Logan onto the bed and felt his forehead, this time taking his glove off. It was burning, just like he had suspected, but something about all of this, the sudden spike in fever and near fainting, it didn’t feel right.

“Logan?” Janus asked. Logan was sitting at the edge of his bed and Janus knelt to get eye-level with him, “Logan, this isn’t just a normal cold, is it?”

Logan took a moment to process his words, and when he did he flinched back.

“Don’t know what you’re talking about,” Logan slurred and fell back on his bed. The lie tasted like overripe cherries. He raised an eyebrow at Logan who groaned.

“ ‘S fine,” Logan said.

Janus’s eyebrow climbed higher and Logan shook his head.

“ _It’s_ fine,” Logan repeated, this time enunciating, “I’ve been dealing with it, ok? Just leave it alone,” he muttered and closed his eyes.

“Dealing with _what_?” Janus asked, but Logan’s chest was already rising and falling steadily.

“Now he decides to fall asleep?” Janus grumbled, curiosity peaked. He got up, switched off the light, and debated whether he should lock Logan’s door. Technically, he had the ability to keep the sides either out or inside their rooms and Janus was seriously considering it if it meant it would make Logan _stay_ and _rest_. He sighed, deciding against it.

“Just stay, dammit,” he muttered and closed the door behind him.


	3. Shark Liver and Thin Mints

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Janus consults someone about his predicament-  
> Notes: Mildly disturbing energy because of the person Janus consults

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me: I wonder if people are getting annoyed with me constantly writing fics?  
> Also Me: *gets pummeled with love and support*
> 
> Y'all are NUTS, Thank you so much for reading, commenting, and kudoing!! They absolutely FUEL me :')

“I’m telling you, Remus. It’s _weird_ ,” Janus said, for maybe the fourth time since marching into Remus’s room and plopping into his dark grey beanbag chair. There were questionable stains on it as well, but Janus had long since learned _not_ to question any questionable stains he came across when it came to Remus.

Remus shrugged and notched an arrow into his bow. He let it go and it hit his dartboard which was covered in shark organs. The shark liver burst open and sprayed with sticky, yellow liquid.

“So the nerd is sick, you said he was resting now so it should be fine,” Remus said and notched another arrow, “next target: sinus venosus.”

“But it’s not _normal_ sick,” Janus said and waved his hand in front of him, “Logan confirmed it himself! He said that he has been ‘dealing’ with it, but I don’t know what _it_ is!”

Remus raised an eyebrow, “If he wants it to be left alone, it’s best you leave it alone-hell yes!” Remus cheered as his arrow hit the shark heart.

“But you _know_ how these so called ‘light sides’ get,” Janus said, “They never address anything head on until it comes to a tipping point.”

Remus held out his hand and his arrows flew back into his quiver. Another flip of his hand and his bow turned into an ax and the organs changed into sheep eyes. He held the ax out to his side, stuck his tongue out a bit as he aimed, and threw the ax, splitting one of the sheep eyes perfectly in half.

“Bulls eye!” he yelled and tilted his head, “Or, I guess sheep’s eye!”

The ax flew back to his hand and he turned to Janus who groaned loudly at him.

“Alright, alright it’s obvious that this is bugging you. So what? What do you think could be going on with him?”

Janus hummed and put a finger to his chin, “Well, I only noticed him feeling bad today and that was after we recorded the video with Thomas. Then, it got worse after we talked to Thomas about his exercise plan.”

“So what? The common factor is Thomas?” Remus asked, setting the ax down and sitting on his bed.

Janus shook his head, “Maybe? But earlier I saw him talk to Thomas alone and he was fine.”

Remus had taken his ax back into his hands and was filing his nails with it. The ax caught on his thumb and sliced the top half off. Remus shook his hand and replaced his thumb.

“Well that was alone. Maybe it has something to do with groups. What happened during the video earlier and the exercise talk? Maybe there’s something else you’re missing.”

Janus groaned, wishing that Remus had been present to witness both events. He may have been destructive, but being a part of creativity meant that Remus had a gift for tying together story lines and noticing details. He didn’t show it off often, but he had been instrumental in the great lost bowler cap incident of 2018 (Patton had mistaken it for one of Thomas’s old fedoras and threw it in a closet) and the case of the squeaky door (turned out not to be anything with the door, a mouse just happened to squeak whenever someone opened it).

Janus tried to remember what had happened during the video. They were talking about one of Thomas’s never-ending ‘assembly line’ of problems as Logan had once eloquently put it. It was Girl Scout season again and one of Thomas’s friends had a kid in the program, but Thomas had made a commitment to stick to a diet. Logan had offered the obvious solution: just tell them he wasn’t interested. But then the questions of loyalty and friendship came into the conversation and Logan’s contribution had been ignored.

Personally, Janus thought Thomas should just buy a box, but it could never be that easy.

“I guess,” Janus said tentatively after thinking, “both times, Logan’s advice was ignored?”

Remus nodded, “Ok, that’s something. So ignoring the nerd is causing the headaches. It lines up with what you said.”

“Maybe,” Janus muttered. But Thomas had ignored him plenty of times before. Not that it wasn’t annoying, but it certainly didn’t manifest physically. Janus sighed, “I guess I’ll just keep an eye on him until I know for sure. Maybe I should check back in on him now.”

Remus hummed, “Sure, but why are you so fixated on this anyways? I thought you didn’t even like Logan.”

Janus snapped up.

“Why would you say that?” he asked and Remus shrugged and went back to ax throwing.

“I mean, you did impersonate him twice. Got him out of the picture?”

Janus squinted, “That’s only because he’s the easiest to impersonate. No over-zealous feelings like Patton, no obvious mannerisms like Roman, and no awful make-up like Virgil.”

Remus shrugged again, focusing on splitting sheep eyes.

Janus didn’t like the implications of what Remus had said. It hadn’t been personal, Janus’s decision to impersonate Logan, but what if Logan had taken it the wrong way? He didn’t seem to act any differently, but Logan did like to hide his feelings.

Janus shook his head. The best way to get answers was right at its source. Janus waved goodbye to Remus and sunk out of his room. He padded across the hallway, stood in front of Logan’s door, and knocked lightly. There was no response, but the door was unlocked and Janus quietly pushed it open.

“Sorry to bother you if you’re sleeping, Logan, but,” he stopped and stared at the bed, empty for the third time that day. He slapped his own head.

“You know, really, I should have expected this,” he muttered and headed out to start searching for the logical side again.


	4. Cilantro

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Janus searches for Logan (again again) !

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Helllloooo lovely readers <3  
> Thank you so much for all the positive comments last chapter 😭 y'all are the best :') and as always, thank you for reading! Hope you enjoy the chapter ;)

“Patton, do you know where Logan is?” Janus asked and Patton looked up from his place in front of the TV.

“Well he just helped me schedule Thomas’s appointment, but I heard,” Patton took in Janus’s appearance for a moment, “what the hey happened to you, kiddo?”

Janus groaned, shook a few shells and kelp out of his hat, and put it back on his head.

“Checked the Imagination,” Janus said, “damn merfolk.”

Patton blinked, “Ah, ok, well I heard that he was with Virgil. Why do you ask?”

“Why-” Janus started, but cut himself off. The guy had been pale and dizzy the last he had seen him and Patton was asking _why_ Janus was searching for him?

“He should get some rest,” Janus said, trying not to let his annoyance shine through. Patton’s eyes widened.

“Oh, he said he was feeling all better though! Crazy, huh?”

“Yeah,” Janus gritted out, “crazy.”

Janus turned and went up the stairs. He could feel his irritation drive him forwards as his footsteps made loud _stomp_ sounds on the carpet. He knew that he embodied the function of deceit and was therefore more attuned to lies but come _on_. Did the others have no sense or was Logan just a better liar than Janus gave him credit for?

Janus walked into Virgil’s room, not even bothering to knock. Virgil was sitting at the edge of his bed and Logan was sitting in his chair. They both looked up at his sudden entrance and Virgil wasted no time in getting up and hissing at him (a poor hiss too. 4/10. Virgil could usually do better).

“Didn’t you see the sign that said no snakes allowed in here?” Virgil asked while jabbing a finger at him. Janus calmly moved the finger away from himself.

“Didn’t _you_ see the sign that said no emos allowed after 2012?” Janus retorted.

“I didn’t see either sign,” Logan said from the desk. Janus glared at him and waved his hand around.

“ _You,”_ Janus said.

“Me?” Logan replied innocently. Janus had to hold himself back from throwing Logan over his shoulders and marching out of the room.

“Go. To. Bed,” Janus said, punctuating each word with a clap. Logan tilted his head a little.

“I’m feeling ok now, Janus.”

Janus squinted. It wasn’t a lie, Logan really must have been feeling better despite not resting or sleeping or doing any of the things that normally made people feel better.

“Besides, Virgil needed help with the dryer issue,” Logan finished. Virgil nodded.

“If we try to do it ourselves we could mess up, if we try to get someone else to do it, it would mean _calling_ people.”

Janus sighed, “And?”

Virgil glared at him, “ _Calling_ people means having to _talk to_ people.”

Janus raised an eyebrow and Virgil groaned.

“Whatever. I don’t need you to understand, I just need Logan because as much as I would like to just ignore the issue, Thomas really needs clean clothes.”

Logan hummed, “Perhaps we can look at a few YouTube videos and see if anyone knows how to fix the problem. If it seems too complicated, then we’ll resort to calling someone.”

Virgil nodded and got up, “Alright. Sounds good, let’s go tell Thomas.”

A flinch, barely perceptible. Logan’s shoulders tensed ever so slightly, Janus narrowed his eyes at the sight.

“Thomas doesn’t need both of us to tell him, just one of us should suffice.”

Virgil furrowed his brows for a moment before shrugging.

“I guess. Just get snake face out of my room, yeah?”

Logan nodded and Virgil disappeared. Logan ushered Janus out of the room, and they both walked silently for a moment before Logan groaned.

“Would you stop looking at me like that?” Logan asked and Janus’s eyebrows flew up.

“Like what?”  
“Suspiciously!”

“I’m looking at you suspiciously because you’re acting suspicious!” Janus fired back and crossed his hands in front of him. They had reached Logan’s room and Logan started to walk in, but Janus gripped his hand and held him back.

“How is it that you got better so quickly? Why don’t you want to talk to Thomas when others are around? What is going on with you, Logan?”

Logan tried to snatch his hand away. When it didn’t work right away, he turned his hand so that his thumb was at the junction of Janus’s grip and pulled again, this time successfully retrieving his hand.

“Nothing,” Logan said. Janus grimaced, the lie was sour. Lime and rotten cilantro. Logan noticed Janus’s expression and rephrased.

“Nothing you need to worry or conjecture about.”

“But-”

“It’s fine, Janus. Please just,” Logan looked at him and then back towards his door, “Just leave it alone.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *spoiler* he does not


	5. Coconut

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snake detective-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello fancy folk~  
> Thanks so much for reading! This one's another shorter chapter, but I promise there's more to come- hope you enjoy the chapter! ;)

Janus could not leave it alone.

He tried. He did. For a full 5 minutes he tried not to think about Logan’s mysterious illness.

It didn’t work, something about the look in Logan’s eyes, silently pleading and desperate tugged at him. Janus shrugged, gave himself a pat on the back for the effort, and went to work. Logan didn’t want him to conjecture? Fine, he’d just have to gather solid evidence. Form one of those ‘hypotheses’ that Logan loved so much.

He wouldn’t be able to do anything more today, it was already nighttime, so Janus made a list of what he needed to look out for such as Logan’s mannerisms when he was feeling uncomfortable: eye twitches, pinched expressions, turning his head away. Janus looked at his list and nodded in satisfaction before drifting to sleep.

The next day, Janus did little more than observe. He felt like he had when he was studying the other sides during his impersonation days. Like a shadow: not quite invisible, but not quite seen.

Logan seemed to interact normally with the others. He would go talk to Thomas, but always alone. Janus jotted that down, looked like Remus was right about Thomas being an important factor.

The day after that was a video day. Logan, Roman, Patton, and himself were all filming while Virgil and Remus took a break. It was going normally until-

“I simply think that the most straight forward way to combat an issue is to research both sides and choose whichever aligns with your values,” Logan said and Patton shook his head.

“Research’s all well and good, Logan, but sometimes you just gotta _feel_ the solution.”

“How can you _feel_ anything if you’re not educated about it?”

Thomas shook his head, “I think Patton’s right about this one, Logan. It’s more of an emotional issue.”

Logan rubbed his head. Janus mentally added the mannerism to his list.

“Emotions play an important role in decision making, but choosing a decision based on pure emotion is…inadvisable Thomas,” Logan said. 

Thomas hummed, “I guess…I’ll think about it.”

Janus flinched. Thomas was lying, a strangely sweet mix of grenadine and coconut. He had already made up his mind about the issue and from the looks of it, Logan had already pieced that together. Logan winced, unable to hold it this time, but only Janus was looking.

“Well. If that’s all,” Logan said and sunk out. Janus followed. When he got to Logan’s room, Logan was sitting in his desk chair, holding his head in his hands as if, without the support, his head would roll right off his neck.

Oh. That was disturbing imagery. Remus was rubbing off on him.

“Hey,” Janus said, softly so as not to worsen what looked like an awful headache. Logan looked up and groaned.

“It’s just a-”

“Headache?” Janus finished for him (half because he knew what he was going to say and half because he didn’t feel like tasting the lie). “Why are you sitting at your desk chair?”

Logan blinked at him lazily and gestured towards his laptop.

“I have some work I would like to get done.”

Janus sighed and switched off the computer.

“I think you and I both know you’re not going to get anything done.”

Logan opened his mouth, closed it, and sighed. He walked towards his bed and Janus smiled. Logan may be stubborn, but he wasn’t illogical.

The day after, Janus encouraged Thomas to listen to Logan’s points, subtly enough that Logan didn’t notice what he was doing. Janus noticed a decisive decrease in the mannerisms that indicated that Logan was in pain.

For a full week, Janus observed. When he let Thomas ignore Logan, Logan would go back to his room with an obvious headache and Janus would follow, Tylenol at the ready. When Thomas listened, Logan was fine. It didn’t take much to put it together.

Janus burst into Logan’s room and Logan startled away from where he was reading a book at his desk.

“I have a hypothesis for you,” Janus said.


	6. Chili

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Janus: I've cracked the case!  
> Everyone in the comments: We've been knew...  
> (he's trying his best, ok?)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey there you wonderful, amazing person!  
> Thanks so much for reading :) Hope you have a great day and that you enjoy the chapter ;)

“Janus-” Logan started, but Janus put up a hand.

“I’ve been gathering evidence all week and have formed an informed, succinct hypothesis based on the data,” Janus said. Logan squirmed.

“I…I do like data,” Logan muttered and waved for him to sit down. Janus sat at the edge of Logan’s bed, crossed his legs, and pointed at Logan.

“You get sick when Thomas ignores you,” Janus waved a paper in his face when Logan started to argue, “evidence, remember?”

Logan squinted at it. He took the paper and began to read, his expression going slack.

“You-when did you have the time to- why,” Logan stuttered. Janus smirked. The paper was filled with Janus’s notes and, most notably, his experimental design plan. The control being when Janus did not intervene on Logan’s behalf, the experimental groups being varying levels of when he did. Janus had to admit that the format was borderline a little crazy, but he knew that presenting it in this way would make it impossible for Logan to deny and, more importantly, may make him reveal what exactly was happening.

“So I know the what, Logan. What I don’t get is the _why_. Thomas ignores me, he ignores the other sides sometimes too. Why is it that you’re being physically affected? I’m not leaving here until I know.”

Logan squinted at Janus, Janus stared right back until Logan set down his book with a sigh.

“It-it wasn’t as bad before,” Logan started quietly and Janus leaned forwards, “It started when Thomas realized I could be _wrong_. I’m the physical embodiment of logic. Despite that, I do have,” he shuddered, “A certain set of emotions and opinions. It’s why he has multiple sides so he can look at a problem from all angles. But-”

Logan sighed and ran a hand through his hair, “Lately, it feels like Thomas has been ignoring me more and more. And when Thomas ignores me it,” Logan swallowed, “it means that he believes that his logic is faulty. Since I embody literality to an extent, it physically makes me…faulty.”

Janus gaped.

“Well, why don’t you tell him that?” he cried and Logan snapped up.

“NO!”

“Why not?!”

“Because-” Logan tore his hand through his hair again, ripping off a few strands, “It-” he cut himself off again.

“Are you afraid they won’t listen?”

“No, that’s not it.”

“Angry?”

“What? No, of course not!”

“Then what?!” Janus yelled, feeling himself get frustrated, “what reason could you possibly have? Tell Thomas, I’m sure he’ll listen and then all your problems will-!”

“Why do you even care?!” Logan interrupted, standing from his desk and looming over Janus. Janus scoffed.

“Why wouldn’t I? You’re a core part of Thomas’s functions. He and the others shouldn’t ignore you.”

This time, Logan scoffed, “Oh. Like you’re any different?”

Janus flinched back, eyes wide.

“What?” he croaked out and Logan rolled his eyes.

“Janus. You have impersonated me twice now. You have used my voice to push your ideals, all while ignoring my true opinion so really, what makes you any different?”

Janus opened and closed his mouth. He picked at Logan’s covers: dark blue dotted with small white dots in the shape of constellations.

 _I hate it when Remus is right_.

Janus took a deep breath in.

“I- Logan I hope you know that my impersonations of you were never personal. You’re just the easiest to imitate.”

Logan’s eyes narrowed, Janus put his hands up.

“Not- not because you’re boring or anything. I guess…” Janus put a hand to his chin, “I guess because you’re the most similar to myself?”

That seemed to catch Logan’s attention. He said nothing though, only raised an eyebrow in a motion for Janus to continue.

“We both have very similar interests, Logan. Reading philosophy, using facts and reasoning to reach a judgement. As for why I care, while Thomas is a central reason, I’d,” Janus felt his face redden, “I’d also like to think that we’ve become friends.”

Janus groaned at himself. He felt like an elementary school kid, asking someone else to be friends with him. How embarrassing. But Janus looked up, startled at how soft Logan’s eyes had become.

“Oh,” Logan said quietly and sat down next to him on the bed. He stared down at the paper Janus had given him, tracing the tables and graphs.

“Though your methods are a bit…eccentric, I do appreciate the concern and the uh,” he coughed, “the friendship.”

Janus brightened, “So you’ll tell the others then?”

But Logan shook his head, “No.”

“But you just said-!”

“I _do_ appreciate the concern, but this is my issue to deal with so as my…friend, I ask that you leave it alone.”

Janus frowned at that, but felt himself nodding. A mix of chili and orange coated his tongue.

Logan smiled and pointed to the paper in his hands. “Thank you. Now, can you explain this part of your report? The axes aren’t clearly defined.”

Janus gave Logan an exasperated look and pointed out his thought process on the graphs. Eventually, after Logan was done teasing about the minor mistakes in Janus’s paper, they moved on to talking about philosophy. At first, mostly about lying since the topic was rather recent and relevant, but as the hours waxed by, the conversation dissolved into more esoteric topics. Did you know that Pythagoras had a bean cult? Would Descartes disappear if he said, ‘I don’t think so’ ? What would you do if someone mailed you a plucked chicken like they did to Plato? (Logan’s answer was: if it’s alive, let it free, if it’s dead and it’s healthy for you to do so: eat it).

Janus found that he enjoyed Logan’s company immensely, more so now that he wasn’t trying to get the stubborn side to rest. He walked to his room that night, resolute.

He had a plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you want a hint for Janus's plan, it has to do with his name ;)


	7. Banana Milk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Janus carries out his plan-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Confession time~  
> This story was actually supposed to be a one shot based on this chapter, but I couldn't help myself ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ so thank you for taking the time to read and letting me indulge myself! Your comments, kudos, and support have kept me writing and (at the risk of sounding sappy) have helped me rediscover my passion for it :') Thank you all so much, hope you enjoy the chapter! ;)

“It’s not a good idea,” Remus said after Janus told him his plan. They were in Janus’s room, a few days after Janus’s conversation with Logan. Janus shuffled his feet on the soft, warm sand that coated his floor.

“Remus, you know as well as I do that sometimes to get progress, the other party needs a little…nudge,” Janus said with a huff. Remus flopped backwards onto a small sand dune and started making sand-angels.

“Maybe,” he started, “But Logan told you to leave it alone.”

“And I suspect that it’s because he wants to deal with it by himself! Some unnecessary show of macho-ness. It’s silly, Remus! Once the other sides know, Logan will stop getting those awful headaches and fevers and…well everything! I could tell them, but it wouldn’t mean as much coming from me.”

Remus used his Morningstar to help him into a sitting position. He shook the sand out of his hair.

“You really want to do this?” he asked and Janus nodded vigorously. Remus sighed.

“How can I help?”

-

“Thomassss~” Remus sang after popping into the common room. Thomas jumped back and tilted his head at him. Janus watched from the corner.

“It’s time we talk about your _crush_ Thomas, you’ve been holding out on us and I for one want to get it _on_ ,” Remus grinned and both Roman and Virgil rose into the common room immediately (both, curiously, with an assortment of vegetable peels on their heads and clothes).

“The pretty boy from Australia?” Roman asked excitedly and Remus wiggled his eyebrows.

“The very same.”

“The one who took three days to follow us back on insta?” Virgil asked and Roman waved his hand at him.

“The one who followed us back on insta! Oh, that was a glorious day.”

Patton rose into the room, “Ooh, we’re talking about the cruuussshhh?” he asked and wiggled his eyebrows at Thomas who groaned.

“It- I mean, yes he’s very cute and,”

“He made a pun when you were talking!” Patton exclaimed and Thomas stopped, then nodded.

“Well…yes he did. That was,” Thomas sighed, a little dreamily, “endearing, but-”

“But he lives in Australia.”

Janus smiled. Logan had finally entered the picture and his plan could begin.

“Accounting for distance, Thomas, there is no way that you can entertain the idea of a relationship with him,” Logan said and Virgil nodded in agreement.

“We can dream,” Roman sang and Patton chuckled half-heartedly.

“Yes, we can dream. Specifically about-” Remus said and started…dancing suggestively. Thomas’s face flamed.

“Remus!”

“What? It’s not like you’re not thinking it.”

Thomas rubbed his face, “Agh, ok. Why are we talking about this?” he asked and Logan hummed.

“I’m unsure of why, but this crush is getting in the way of some of your tasks Thomas. Much of your day has been taken over by day dream mode.”

“And what’s wrong with day dream mode?!” Roman huffed indignantly. Before Logan could reply, Janus spoke.

“Nothing wrong with a few, indulgent day dreams,” he said, “keeps the mind creative.”

Thomas nodded and Janus noted Logan’s wince. He felt his heart tug at the sight, but pressed on.

“Besides, the world’s more connected now. What with video chatting,” he said.

“Yeah! What’s that fancy video chat thing? Faceclock?” Patton asked.

“Facetime,” Virgil corrected, “And…I guess a relationship that’s not in person puts less pressure on you to dress up or pay for a nice date,” he muttered.

“But-” Logan started, but got cut off by Remus.

“And there are _other_ things you can do over the phone,” Remus said suggestively.

“Remus!”

“What? I just meant texting… But also fu-”

Patton squealed to block out Remus’s several…explicit contributions. Logan was getting more and more frustrated as the conversation went on. He kept trying to add that the boy lived in _Australia_ and they lived _very, very far_ from Australia, but the other sides were caught up in the fantasy. Logan’s winces lingered longer and longer on his face until his expression was looking consistently pinched.

 _Just a little more_ Janus thought, hating what he was doing but knowing it was necessary. He let the conversation continue, adding here and there whenever the conversation started to shift towards the obvious: Thomas would have to move on from his crush.

It was working. Logan was getting pale, Janus could almost feel the heat from his fever from where he was standing. Remus was shooting him concerned looks, but Janus shook his head. He turned to the center of the room and fanned himself.

“The seven of us in one room is rather crowded, don’t you think?” he asked and Virgil nodded.

“Yes, great point. Bye, see ya, thanks for volunteering.”

Janus ignored him, and instead looked at Thomas.

“I like having you all here!” Thomas countered and looked at each of them, “You’re all-”

He stopped.

“Whoa. Logan, what’s wrong?”

 _Finally you notice_ Janus thought, trying not to be bitter.

Logan snapped up, “Nothing,” he muttered, the word slurring a little as he rubbed his face.

“Damn, teach. You- you don’t look so good,” Roman said with a frown, he moved forwards to feel Logan’s forehead, but Logan jerked back.

“I’m-”

“Holy crap, Logan, you’re burning up!” Virgil yelled. While Logan was backing up, Virgil had managed to put his hand on Logan’s forehead from behind him. Logan shook his head and stumbled a bit.

“It’s nothing. It, it is a bit crowded in here so I suppose I’ll take my leave,” Logan said and tried to sink out.

He frowned. His sink out was unsuccessful and he tried again.

“Why-?” he said, stomped at the floor, and nearly fell over.

“Whoa! Kiddo, what’s wrong?” Patton yelled and tried to catch him. Logan held onto the banister and waved him off.

“Nothing!” Logan yelled and hit the floor with his foot again, futilely. He squeezed his eyes shut and held his head in his hands.

“That’s a lie,” Janus said quietly and Logan looked up.

“You,” Logan muttered, his eyes washing over with realization, “Janus, stop!” he yelled and Janus shook his head.

“Tell them Logan. They’re all worried about you.”

“Tell us what?” Thomas yelled, thoroughly freaking out. Logan shook his head rapidly.

“No, _no_ just-ugh,” Logan swayed, not saying anything this time when Roman reached out to steady him.

Roman looped an arm around Logan’s waist and brushed his hair back, the concern making itself known through his heavily furrowed eyebrows. “You’re kind of scaring us, here, teach. What’s the matter?”

“Nothing!” Logan yelled, his voice muffled by Roman’s shirt.

“Lie,” Janus shot back, the lie had tasted like sour banana milk. Logan turned on him. His expression was burning with fury.

“Janus let me go!”

Janus only shook his head, Logan was practically being carried by Roman now. His expression morphed into desperation.

_“Janus”_

Janus felt his heart crack at Logan’s expression. Swimming with desperation and pain, but Janus had to keep-

“ _Please”_

Dammit.

Janus knew that he couldn’t keep this up any longer. He just wasn’t strong enough.

Janus waved his hand and let Logan sink into his room. And as always, he followed.


	8. Tylenol

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Logan is NOT happy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everyone, after last chapter: Well I know you shouldn't have done THAT
> 
> hey everyone!! I really enjoyed reading your comments last chapter (there was even a banana milk recipe in one of them!), so thank you so much for commenting!! Your support means everything, hope you enjoy the chapter! ;)

Logan collapsed onto his bed, shoulders shaking. His back arched a bit and he rolled over into the fetal position, still holding his head. Janus already had medicine and a glass of water on hand. He sat Logan up and urged the medicine towards him. Logan groaned and blinked at Janus, taking a minute to register what was happening.

And when he did, he did _not_ look happy.

“Logan-” Janus started to explain, but Logan didn’t give him a chance. He swiped his hand and the medicine and water went flying out of Janus’s grip. The tablets skittered across the floor and the glass shattered against the wall.

“WHAT THE HELL?” Logan screamed, but Janus didn’t flinch.

“Logan, you need to tell them. _Now._ You saw them, they all care about you and you can’t,” he waved at Logan, “you can’t keep letting yourself get like this! Only a tiny push from me and look, you’re practically falling apart!”

Logan’s eyes blazed and Janus nearly slapped a hand over his own mouth. He had not meant to let that slip.

“This was another part of your experiment?” Logan asked and when Janus said nothing he tensed, “I’m not someone for you to _toy_ with.”

Janus’s eyes widened in horror.

“I, I _know_ that Logan. And perhaps my methods were questionable, but now that they know you can-”

“What? Now they can tiptoe around me, make sure my feelings aren’t hurt? Pay attention so that they don’t cause another headache for me? Dammit, _dammit_ I told you to leave it alone!”

“But-!”  
“IT WASN’T YOUR PLACE!” Logan roared, “I don’t want them to listen to me just because they feel like they have to! I want them, I want Thomas, to recognize my contributions. To truly try and understand what I have to say before making a decision. Don’t you _get it_?”

Logan’s eyes were watery, he blinked hard in the way people do when they don’t want to cry, but it only looked painful not to. Janus added ‘Logan crying’ to the list of things he never wanted to see again.

“I didn’t want _pity_ , I wanted _respect_ ,” Logan said quietly, “And now…” he choked up and shook his head.

“Logan-” Janus tried again, but Logan had gone onto his bed and rolled to his side, facing away from Janus.

“Just go away,” Logan said tiredly.

Janus stared at Logan’s back for a bit. He…he really hadn’t changed, had he? He thought he was doing the right thing, but he just ended up repeating his mistakes. Taking control of a situation just because he thought it was right. Silencing Logan’s opinions because he thought he knew better.

Really, who the hell did he think he was?

Quietly, Janus fished out two more Tylenol pills from his pocket and set them on Logan’s nightstand. He picked up the glass pieces, thankful that he was wearing gloves, and threw them in the small bin that Logan kept by his desk. Finally, he went to the door and looked back, trying to think of anything, _anything_ he could say.

Janus walked out. He watched in a daze as the door closed. He wasn’t sure how long he had stood there, gazing at the dark wood as if he would find an answer in the swirls of the pattern. Someone was calling his name, but it was muffled, like he was underwater.

“-Nus. _Janus_ ,” came the voice again and Janus looked up. Remus was staring down at him, eyes full of dark concern.

 _You were right_ Janus wanted to say, but couldn’t find it in himself to speak.

“You…you don’t look great,” Remus said, not unkindly, “But everyone’s waiting for you in the common room. I didn’t tell them anything, though.”

Janus blinked at him and allowed Remus to lead him back to where the other sides and Thomas were waiting.

“What happened?” Thomas asked.

“Where’s Logan?” Patton cried.

“What did you _do_ to him?” Roman yelled, his eyes narrow and suspicious. Janus swallowed hard, but still couldn’t say anything.

“Roman,” Remus practically growled, but Roman held his ground.

“What? We all heard him, Logan was asking for him to stop something! What did you _do_?” Roman asked again, his hand at his hip as if ready to summon his sword. Remus’s hand crawled towards his Morningstar, but it was strangely Virgil who spoke up.

“Roman, c’mon,” he muttered and tugged at Roman’s sleeve, “the guy’s obviously freaked. Give him a minute.”

The shock of Virgil supporting him shook Janus out of his stupor.

“I…I didn’t do anything _to_ him, per say,” Janus started, his voice wavering a little.

And then, he told them everything.

About the headaches, the experiment, the fevers, the chills, the connection to Thomas, and Logan’s reasoning for not telling them sooner. When he was done, he looked up. The others had a variety of expressions on their faces. Roman’s was shocked, Virgil’s angry (though it didn’t seem to be directed at Janus), Patton’s sad, and Thomas’s aghast.

“I…I didn’t know,” Thomas said quietly and Janus shook his head.

“Of course you didn’t. He never told you.”

“But _you_ figured it out,” Virgil said and slapped his own face angrily, “none of us thought that Logan’s headaches were anything to worry about. We just took it at face value when he said it was fine I,” he groaned, “heck, _I_ say I’m fine when I’m not. How did I not see this sooner?”

Roman nodded, but said nothing, his face still pale. Janus could tell that Patton was trying hard not to cry, he had his head in his hands in a way that almost mirrored Logan. Janus thought about how Logan had looked like. Angry, hurt,

Betrayed.

Janus took in a shaky breath.

“I messed up,” he said quietly and everyone turned to look at him, “I thought I was helping, but I- I should have just left it alone. I took all the control away from him because I was so _frustrated_ with seeing him hurt. I just- I couldn’t handle it,” Janus thought about how painful Logan’s headaches had seemed. How it sometimes seemed like Logan couldn’t even see him.

“I was selfish, and wrong,” he whispered, “like I always am.”

Janus felt his throat constrict, and no, absolutely not. He was not crying in front of everyone. Janus took a deep breath to keep the tears at bay.

“No,” said a voice.

Janus looked up. The voice had seemed so strong and confident, out of place for everyone in the room at the moment so Janus was endlessly shocked to see that it was Thomas who had spoken.

Thomas locked eyes with Janus.

“I never, _never_ want to be the reason that any of you are being hurt. I understand why Logan is upset, I do, but keeping it from me is a lie of omission that I will not support.”

Janus squirmed and Thomas’s eyes softened.

“Lying isn’t always bad,” he clarified, “but I draw the line when it hurts someone I care about.”

Thomas’s voice was stern when he spoke.

“You’re my self-preservation. While your methods may have been questionable, you saw a part of me hurting and you did what you could to stop it. No one will blame you for that. It does not make you bad or evil. Am I clear?”

 _Well fuck_ Janus thought as a sob finally escaped him. He took off his bowler hat and used it to hide his face. The others said nothing, letting him cry in short bursts in peace. When he was done, he sniffed, put his hat back on, and smiled.

“Crystal.”


	9. Crofter's

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another plan, this time planned by everyone~
> 
> (also, that one post about Remus speaking French since Roman speaks Spanish)

“Well isn’t this…interesting,” Patton said.

Janus had shown them his plans and notes. Going through them now, with everyone, made it even clearer how he had gone maybe, slightly, a bit overboard with trying to figure out what was wrong with Logan. Roman seemed to notice his grimacing and bumped his shoulder.

“The nerd doesn’t exactly make it easy, does he?” Roman asked and Janus looked up in surprise. Roman scratched the back of his neck, “And uh, I don’t either. Sorry about jumping to accusations earlier.”

Janus blinked.

“It’s uh, it’s fine. Made sense, honestly.”

Roman hummed and they sat in a bit of an awkward silence until Thomas piped up.

“Ok, so we know from Janus’s notes that Logan’s malady lasts about an hour before clearing up as long as he is uninterrupted. So we only have an hour to get this done.”

Roman gave him a quick nod and everyone, Thomas included, sunk into the mindscape. It was quiet, Logan must still have been in his room.

“Patton, thumbprints. Roman, room. Virgil and Remus,” Thomas pointed to the entryway of the kitchen and they both nodded in understanding, “Janus, you’re with me. Alright people, let’s go, go, go!”

They moved in frenzied haste, so quickly that the hour was up before they knew it. Thomas inspected the room and nodded.

“Great job everyone. Now, how do we get him down here?”

“Leave that to us,” Remus piped up and grabbed his brother. The two sunk away and, a few moments later, they heard a crash from upstairs.

“For the last time you two, I’m not in the mood and I HATE THIS GAME!”

“Mais c’est un beau jeu!”

« ¡ Si, es fantastico ! »

« Une bonne façon pour passer le temps, pour tuer l’ennui ! »

Logan was coming down the stairs, hounded by the twins.

“I-I don’t know what you two are saying, just-” Logan stopped at the entrance to the kitchen, jaw going slack.

“What is all this?”

The room had been transformed: painted a dark, navy blue. The ceiling boasted twinkling lights that matched the constellations on Logan’s bedsheets. The walls had geometric paintings from the Gestalt movement, Logan’s favorite. A banner hung across the entryway that read ‘Thank You Logan!’ in purple and green paint. On the table, thumbprint cookies with Crofter’s jam were arranged neatly in a circle.

Thomas clapped Logan on the shoulder and ushered him inside the kitchen. He offered him a cookie and Logan hesitantly took it.

“Janus told me what was happening,” Thomas said and Logan flinched.

“Oh, I,” he grimaced, “Oh.”

“I’m sorry for putting you through this, Logan,” Thomas said, but Logan only looked more upset, “not only for that, but for not listening to you more.”

Logan looked up in surprise and Thomas sighed.

“It’s not an excuse, but I always have a sense of what you’ll say. You’re logic, so deep-rooted in me that I sometimes forget that you have your _own_ opinions, valuable insights and contributions. I am _so_ grateful to have you, and everyone else is too.”

Thomas gestured around him and the other sides nodded in agreement.

“I’m sorry for always talking over you, specs,” Roman said, “and I’m not saying that because I feel guilty well,” he frowned, “I do feel a little guilty, I mean how could I not after-that-I mean-”

“What Roman is trying to say,” Virgil said, putting a hand on Roman’s shoulder, “is that we hate that you think you had to go through this alone. Of course we’ll do anything to avoid you from being in pain, but we won’t listen to you just because of that.”

Patton offered his another cookie.

“You’re just as important as all of us, kiddo. Sorry we made you feel like you weren’t.”

Logan looked around him, his eyes lingering on the constellations, then down to his cookie. “I-I don’t know what to say,” Logan said after a moment and Thomas held up a hand.

“One more thing,” he said and gestured for Janus to come over. Janus handed Logan a small ring, the size of his pinky.

“What is it?” Logan asked, holding it up to inspect it.

Thomas patted Janus on the shoulder, “Janus helped me make it. If you tap it once, it’ll let me know if you feel a headache coming on.”

Janus nodded, “If you tap it twice, it will let everyone know. It is, of course, your choice to use or wear it, but for now,” Janus took a deep breath in “Logan, I’m so sorry. You had just accepted me as your friend and I couldn’t deal with seeing you hurting, but I shouldn’t have tried to manipulate you into telling the others. So… consider this an apology gift?”

Logan turned the ring in his hand a few times. Janus poked his finger through a hole in his glove, probably made when he was picking up glass.

“I, I still don’t think how you went about the issue was right,” Logan started, but slipped on the ring, “but I do know that it came from good intentions,” he smiled at Janus, “Thank you. And, and I suppose I should have been more forthright,” he looked around the room again, “it would seem that you all really do listen.”

“Course we do, Specs!” Roman yelled, seemingly over his stuttering, “who knows where we’d be if we didn’t!”

“Probably dead in a ditch,” Virgil muttered.

“Definitely would have kicked the bucket,” Remus agreed.

“Why would you kick a bucket?” Logan asked and Thomas snorted, patting him on the back.

“Idiom, Logan. But you’re here to make sure I don’t.”

Logan adjusted his glasses, “I shall add avoiding bucket kicking to my list of duties.”

Janus shook his head, “If the past few days have taught me anything, it’s that you need to shorten your list of duties,” he grumbled. Logan hummed.

“Perhaps. Delegating tasks will increase efficiency,” he eyed Janus who was making the hole in his glove bigger, “And, uh, Janus?”

Janus looked up.

“I’m,” he waved his hand, “sorry. For-”

Janus smiled and snapped, the hole in his glove fixed itself. “Already forgiven.”

Remus whooped, “Well now that all the mushy stuff is over, let’s get this party _started!_ ”

-

“Don’t you think this is a little…much, Logan?”

It was two days after Logan’s Appreciation/ Apology party and Janus was swaddled in at least four quilted blankets. Three glasses filled with water and one filled with ice sat on his nightstand. Logan shook his head.

“Absolutely not, rest and hydration are all of maximum importance if you are to recover in the shortest period of time,” Logan said and waved a green concoction in his hands, the pinky ring caught the light and glittered.

“But _Logan_ ,” Janus whined, “it really is just a cold, I’ll be _fine_.”

Logan shook his head, “You didn’t allow me to be alone in my sickness, I shall do the same for you, now drink.”

Logan shoved the drink towards him and Janus gagged. It smelt worse than any lie, with bits of kale floating about.

Janus managed to choke a bit down and looked up bitterly.

“You weren’t a great patient either, you know,” he muttered and Logan had the decency to look a bit contrite.

“Perhaps,” he said and blushed a little, “but, hopefully I’m doing better as a friend?”

Janus looked up at him. He choked down more of Logan’s god awful drink, wiped his lips, and smiled.

“The best.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's what the Creativitwins said:  
> Remus: But it's a great game!  
> Roman: Yes, it's fantastic!  
> Remus: A great way to pass time, to kill boredom!
> 
> *I don't speak Spanish so if anyone knows if my Spanish translation was wrong, please lmk*
> 
> Hello hello!!  
> Thank you so much for reading to the end of one of my little stories :) I hope you enjoyed it! I hope you know that I appreciate all of you and your support. Sappy as it may sound, it’s one of the constants I’ve had since the world has been turned upside down so thank you ❤❤❤
> 
> Speaking of constants… (warning: self plug): Did you enjoy this story? Are you a sucker for hurt/ comfort (like me?)? Did you want to see some more snake/ prince interaction?? Then check out my next story: Tipping the Scales ! At the risk of sounding pretentious, I’m actually really excited for this next one :D
> 
> And, of course, regardless if you read on, Thank you so much for reading THIS story! Until next time ;)


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